Youth Arts Intern

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Youth Arts Intern

Paid internship opportunity. (3 days per week, for 4 months beginning Jan 2024, Real Living Wage – £11,428.56 per annum actual salary; £952.38 per month)

We are looking for a Youth Arts Intern to work on our After Hours Arts Academy. This role is ideal for someone beginning their journey in the arts or thinking about a career in the arts. It combines practical hands on experience supporting creative workshops with opportunities for self development and learning. Enthusiasm and a willingness to learn are more important than specific experience.

About the After-Hours Arts Academy Project

After-Hours Arts Academy is a pilot project in partnership with Pontardawe Arts Centre creating, technical and transferable skills of young people in Pontardawe and the surrounding areas The project is a year long programme of creative and technical skills training and activities which will:

  • upskill young people in practical creative arts, technical theatre and digital arts and media skills
  • develop young people’s confidence, communication and teamworking skills
  • draw on experienced industry professionals to deliver training and act as positive role models for participants
  • expand the horizons of young people who may not have considered a career in the creative industries
  • address a recognised gap in the technical theatre workforce in Wales
  • encourage young people who have not previously engaged in the arts to cross the threshold of the Arts Centre for the first time
  • provide flexible accreditation opportunities for young people through Arts Award

The programme includes:

  • After Hours Arts Academy: 8 x 6 week informal short courses in creative, technical and digital disciplines. The courses will be delivered by professionals working in the creative industries. The courses are in Fashion, Music Production, Acting for Screen, Photography, Film making, Visual Arts, Graffiti & Script writing. Participants will have the flexibility to try things out and move to another course if the first doesn’t suit them.
  • Techin’ It Live: a week long intensive technical theatre skills training course, in which participants take on all the roles of a production team, tutored and mentored by industry professionals. This culminates in a live production at the Arts Centre, performed and ‘tech’ed’ by the participants.
  • Academy Live! : a week’s intensive creative development project. Building on the skills learned in After Hours Arts Academy, participants will work with professional artists to create work and share it at the Arts Centre.
  • Flexible portfolio based accreditation for participants through Arts Award. Participants can take the skills and experience from all elements of the project and use it as evidence in gaining an Explore or Bronze (NQF level1) award.

About the Role

The Youth Arts Intern will be based with Mess Up The Mess and will support the running of the project. The intern will help to support creative workshops with participants and help co-ordinate the project. There will be opportunities to learn from, observe and support other Mess Up The Mess activities. As this is a development opportunity for someone starting out in the arts, we will support you to explore your future career pathway through engaging with all aspects of Mess Up The Mess’s work, and where possible, the work of other organisations Mess Up The Mess works with.

Person Specification

You don’t need any specific experience for this role. It has been designed to create an opportunity for someone beginning a career in the arts, or who is thinking of starting a career in the arts.

This role will be based in the Mess Up The Mess office in Ammanford however activity will take place in Pontardawe and there may be opportunities to work in the Arts Centre at different times, there may also be the opportunity to work from home at points. The postholder will need the ability to work in Ammanford and travel to Pontardawe, for which expenses will be paid.

We are looking for you to:

  • Have an interest and enthusiasm for working in an arts environment
  • Be willing to take part in drama and youth work games and creative activities
  • Have an interest in supporting young people to achieve their potential
  • Be willing to learn new things
  • Be a positive role model for participants including being polite and respectful to colleagues and participants
  • Have good written and verbal communication skills
  • Be confident in using ICT to do simple tasks such as sending messages, filling in online forms and writing emails
  • Have practical skills in using social media
  • Be reliable and a good timekeeper
  • Be able to work unsupervised on occasion as required
  • Be able to follow rules and procedures
  • Be able to work evenings and weekends
  • Be able to work in the Ammanford office
  • Be able to travel to workshops in Pontardawe, for which expenses will be paid

In addition, it would be an advantage (but not essential) for you to:

  • Have some experience of working or volunteering in a role where you have helped people
  • Speak Welsh

The successful candidate will need to pass a DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check. All our staff are required to do this as our work involves us working with young people.

Job Description

As the Youth Arts Intern, you will:

  • Support the day to day running of the After-Hours Arts Academy
  • Carry out administration tasks including taking registers
  • Take part in planning creative workshops, identifying equipment and materials needed
  • Gather resources and prepare materials for creative workshops with young people
  • Support project staff running creative workshops, for instance by laying out equipment and materials before sessions and making sure everything is put away at the end
  • Assist participants during creative workshops by being a positive role model taking part in all creative tasks
  • Be a point of communication between participants and project staff
  • Share information with participants about upcoming activities by sending and responding to messages
  • Write and post social media posts to promote the project
  • Take photographs and video to help tell the story of the project and for use in social media and in funding reports
  • Take part in learning and development opportunities to develop your own career in the arts
  • Bring your own interests and skills to the project and gain professional experience in using them
  • Be part of the Mess Up The Mess team and contribute to the full range of creative opportunities we provide for young people
  • Follow the policies and procedures of Mess Up The Mess in your work at all times
  • Carry out any other duties required to ensure the smooth running of the project

How To Apply

We can only accept applications on our application form. Please download the form:

Intern Application Form – Nov 23

You will be asked to explain how you meet the requirements of the role as described in the Person Specification (above). Please think carefully about all your experience (including school or college, interests, pastimes and activities, volunteering or caring responsibilities) and how it shows you meet the requirements of the role.

The deadline for applications is Thursday 14th December 2023 at 1.00 pm. We cannot accept applications made after this time.

We will shortlist applicants based on how well they meet the requirements of the role described in the Person Specification. If you have been shortlisted, we will invite you to come to an interview on Wednesday 19th Dec 2023 in Pontardawe.

If you have any questions about the role, or you would like to speak to someone about it, please email us at: hello@messupthemess.co.uk and we will arrange a time to speak.

Please note: this paid internship is a 4 month fixed term opportunity without possibility of extension.

This After Hours Art Academy project has received £64,304.16 from the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund